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LEARNING TO WRITE IN ENGLISH - PLANNING YOUR WRITING

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:31:00 +0000

This is the last of several entries on writing at Intermediate Level. We have discussed some common errors we make at this level when first learning to write in English. We have mentioned grammar and vocabulary points. We last discussed some confusing punctuation issues.

In this entry we will go over some tips on how to plan the writing and develop the text. We said that, at this level we should be able to write simple correspondence such as letters, emails, and postcards. We should also be able to write about personal experience in essay format. We may be asked to write a descriptive essay or an argumentative essay on a certain topic using specific grammatical structures and relevant vocabulary. There is usually a specified format that we have to follow and a number of words that we should cover. Read the task carefully. Follow the instructions closely. Respond to the questions provided thoroughly.

Some general things that we should keep in mind, regardless of the type of text we write in English, are:
1 Always plan your writing. Although it seems like double work, your outline will save you time in the long run.
2 Always keep your writing simple and clear. If you're taking a test, you will not be able to use a spell checker. Don't use vocabulary and punctuation that you are unsure of.
3 Support your main ideas with relevant arguments and examples. Give reasons and examples that clearly prove the point you are making.
4 Always leave time to review your writing. Go back and silently read the text to yourself. Check for spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes. Correct them if you find any. Always hand in a clean and correct final draft.

The following are examples of the format we should follow when writing these two basic types of text: formal / informal correspondence (letters, emails, and postcards) and a general essay format.

FORMAL, SEMI-FORMAL, AND INFORMAL CORRESPONDENCE
Writing letters, emails, and postcards is very similar. Of course letters are more formal than emails and postcards. However, all three are considered correspondence.
In class we spend a lot of time discussing and practicing the format of letters, which is usually more formal than emails, and certainly more formal than postcards.

FORMAL CORRESPONDENCE (LETTERS)
We write formal letters to our bank, an airline, or a company. Very often these are letters of complaint or queries. We rarely know the name of the person we are addressing.
When we don't know the person's name we begin formal correspondence with the salutation:
Dear Sir,
(This is the correct salutation if you don't know the name, but you know you are addressing a man.)
Dear Madam,
(This is the correct salutation when you are addressing a woman.)
You would use the most formal salutation if you don't have any information about the addressee:
Dear Sir / Madam,
If you decide to open with the most formal salutation,
use the most formal closing:
Yours Faithfully,
(Signature).

SEMI-FORMAL CORRESPONDENCE (LETTERS AND EMAILS)
When writing to our landlord or our employer, whom we know, we use a semi-formal text. This could be either in letter or email format.
If you are writing to a man and you know his name (John Smith), the best way to start the letter would be:
Dear Mr. Smith (Mr. / Mr is the title for a man.)
If you are writing to an unmarried woman called Mary Jones, then you would address the letter/email:
Dear Miss Jones (Miss is the title for an unmarried woman.)
Dear Ms. Jones (Ms. / Ms is a title used for both single and married women.)
If you know that Mary Jones is married, you would begin with:
Dear Mrs. Jones (Mrs./Mrs is the title for a married woman.)
The correct closing for these would be
Yours Sincerely,
(Signature).

INFORMAL CORRESPONDENCE (LETTERS, EMAILS, AND POSTCARDS)
If John Smith and Mary Jones are your friends you can begin the letter, email, or postcard with:
Dear John, (Hi / Hello John,)
Dear Mary, (Hi / Hello Mary,)
For either of these salutations you can end with:
Best Wishes,
(Signature)
Best Regards,
(Signature)
Love, (quite informal)
(Signature).

Depending on the task that you have been assigned, choose the best way to open the letter or email. Organise your ideas. Each new idea should start a new paragraph. Begin the paragraph with the main idea, and then support it with reasons and examples. Depending on the salutation you have used, end the letter with the correct closing. Sign the letter, email, or postcard with your name.

It's always a good idea to plan your writing first. Although it seems like double work and you don't like planning, make an outline of the main ideas. Ask your teacher to do some guided planning together in class first. When you get used to making an outline before you write, you will begin to write more effectively.

ESSAY
Essay writing usually takes more time and is more complicated.
The very first thing you should do is pay attention and find out what the purpose of the writing is, and who will read the final product.
The second step is to decide what you want to write about. What makes this easier is planning. We mentioned this previously. Getting used to planning your writing will help you tremendously.
Outlines and mind maps are the best way to organise your ideas before you write your first draft. Here is a basic mind map you can follow for essay writing.

MIND MAP
Write the Subject / Topic in the middle of the page.
Draw lines branching out from the centre with the main ideas.
Main Idea 1
Main Idea 2
Main Idea 3
etc.
Each branch has its own sub-branches with the supporting ideas.
Main Idea 1
Supporting Idea 1
Supporting Idea 2
etc.
In the centre of the page write your Subject / Topic. This is the title of the essay in a sense. It is also the topic sentence which you can re-state in the introduction and conclusion.
Around the topic you can draw lines which represent the main ideas supporting this topic, or proving your thesis. For each main idea there should be at least two arguments or supporting ideas branching out. These are the examples that provide further relevant detail. When your mind map is complete use these notes to write the text.

Make your introductory paragraph interesting to engage your readers. State the topic that you want to discuss. Write in a simple and clear manner. Use vocabulary and punctuation that you are sure of. Show that you can use the underlying grammatical structures confidently.

Begin each new paragraph with one of the main ideas you mapped out. Use examples and reasons to support your point. Cover all sides of an issue.

End with a conclusion. Here you can re-state your topic. Finally, close with an interesting thought or idea.

Make sure you have supported your main ideas or, if this is relevant, you have proved your thesis. Go back and revise the text. Hand in a clean draft free of spelling, grammar, or punctuation errors.

You can train to use these methods by reading similar pieces of writing. As you read analyse the passage. Define the topic. Outline the main ideas and the supporting ideas. Find the grammar structures used in the text. Take notes on key vocabulary relevant to the subject. Practice the grammar structures and vocabulary. Follow the example and write a similar text. Use the grammar structures and vocabulary you practiced. Ask a friend, classmate, or family member to read the writing. Discuss it. If you find any errors, correct them. Hand in a clean final draft to your teacher and ask for further comments. These are some good activities you can do before sitting a writing exam, or participating in a writing activity in class.

These are some of the tips I usually give my students before we begin a writing course, or a specific writing activity. I am sure you will find these very helpful. Prepare well, and you will do a lot better the next time you write a letter, email, or essay in English.

Thank you for reading.

Further to one of your comments on punctuation

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 11:16:00 +0000

Emma Graham said...

Hi Alina, A very interesting website and I'm sure very useful for people studying English.
I am English myself and ashamedly my English grammer is probably worse than many foreign students.
I note that when you write a sentence which includes the word 'and' you often proceed this with a comma. I'm sure from my English calsses many years ago that you eaither use a comma, or 'and' and not both. Please let me know so I can use the correct grammer in the future. As you can see my spelling is not too good either.

Hello Emma
Thank you for your comment. I apologise I haven’t been able to reply earlier.

I’m still experimenting with the format of the blog, and I’ve only just noticed your entry.

Clearly my knowledge of English grammar is based on what I’ve read and studied. You are fortunate enough to experience the living language daily.
I could learn quite a lot from you.

What is customary? Do the English tend to use a comma and a conjunction such as “and”?
In my experience it’s not always necessary, but it is certainly possible. I tend to be influenced by Bulgarian punctuation when I write, even in English.

A common situation when you could have a comma + and is when separating a series of items. When you have a complex and lengthy list it’s better to have the comma, although as you say it’s not necessary.
Example: He hit the ball, dropped the bat, and ran to first base.
Also use a comma + a little conjunction (and, but, for, nor, yet, or, so) to connect two independent clauses, as in "He hit the ball, and then he ran toward third base."

There’s a bit more information in my entry on comma splices. Have a read if you’re interested.

As far as spelling goes I always advise my students to spell the word, and look it up when they're not sure. There are some great dictionaries, reference books, and grammar/spellcheckers out there.

Alright, I hope I’ve been of some help. I’d love to hear/read more about your troubles with English grammar. Please, keep leaving your comments.
Alina

ps I’ll be sure to follow your blog.

COMMON GRAMMAR MISTAKES WE MAKE WHEN WRITING AT INTERMEDIATE LEVEL

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 15:52:00 +0000

As promised we'll have a look at mistakes made by quite a few students when writing at Intermediate level.

Intermediate students of English as a second language are used to writing simple correspondence and longer papers, four to five paragraph essays, with an introduction, body, and conclusion. These include letters, emails, book and film reviews, biographies, descriptive essays, and narratives of interesting events.

They have a clear idea of how to organise a letter, an email, and an essay.

They should by now competently use all present and past grammatical tenses. They should have sound knowledge of the basic future structures. Some of the more experienced students usually experiment with conditional sentences, and the passive voice at this level.

We'll consider common errors made by learners when writing for a class assignment or an exam. The examples provided will give you a clearer idea of how to avoid making these mistakes. When writing in class students are not usually allowed access to resource materials, and are under a certain amount of pressure. When faced with a writing assignment without resource materials on hand plan your main ideas point by point. Flesh out these points and write a first draft then go back and correct it. Underline the words, verb forms, and clauses which seem incorrect and clumsy. Hand in a clean edited draft which you're confident has as few (hopefully none) spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes as possible.

Here are some grammar tips, topic by topic, which you could apply when going back and editing your writing.

DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES

Articles are easily omitted and misused. However, there are rules you can follow as you practice and become more confident with the structure.

The articles are: "A, An or The".
a - is the indefinite article used with words beginning with consonants. She has a dog.
I work in a factory.
an - is the indefinite article used with words beginning with vowels (a,e,i,o,u).
Can I have an apple?
She is an English teacher.

The indefinite article is used with countable singular nouns when referring to one of a number of the same objects, and when talking generally about an object without specifying it.

the - is the definite article used when talking about a specific object that both the person speaking and the listener know.
The car over there is fast.
The teacher is very good, isn't he?

The first time you speak of something use "a or an", the next time you repeat that object use "the".
I live in a house. The house is quite old and has four bedrooms.
I ate in a Chinese restaurant. The restaurant was very good.

These are the basics. The following are some additional rules you should stick to:

DO NOT use an article with countries, states, counties or provinces, lakes and mountains except when the country is a collection of states such as "The United States".
He lives in Washington near Mount Rainier.
They live in northern British Columbia.

Use an article with bodies of water, oceans and seas.
My country borders on the Pacific Ocean

DO NOT use an article when you are speaking about things in general.
I like Russian tea.
She likes reading books.

DO NOT use an article when you are speaking about meals, places, and transport.
He has breakfast at home.
I go to university.

NOUNS
COUNTALBE / UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS
When writing about people or food we readily use nouns we’re not sure whether they are countable or uncountable, and sometimes use them with the wrong quantifier and/or verb. For example, one of my students was trying to describe a family member in a composition about family relationships. Influenced by the group’s native language Bulgarian the student used the word ‘hair’ as a countable noun with an indefinite article.

Example: He has a dark hair.

This would’ve been fine if s/he meant one dark hair out of many as opposed to a full head of dark hair. The correct phrase should be, of course:

He has dark hair. (hair used as an uncountable noun without an indefinite article)

Keep in mind that the way nouns are used in sentences also depends on whether they are countable or uncountable.

What are countable nouns?
Countable nouns are individual objects, people, places, etc. which can be counted.
books, Italians, pictures, stations, men, etc.

A countable noun can be both singular - a friend, a house, etc. - or plural - a few apples, lots of trees, etc.

Use the singular form of the verb with a singular countable noun:
There is a book on the table.
That student is excellent!

Use the plural form of the verb with a countable noun in the plural:
There are some students in the classroom.
Those houses are very big, aren't they?

What are uncountable nouns?
Uncountable nouns are materials, concepts, information, etc. which are not individual objects and can not be counted.
information, water, understanding, wood, cheese, etc.

Uncountable nouns are always singular. Use the singular form of the verb with uncountable nouns:

There is some water in that pitcher.
That is the equipment we use for the project.

Adjectives with Countable and Uncountable Nouns.

Use a/an with countable nouns preceded by an adjective(s):
Tom is a very intelligent young man.
I have a beautiful grey cat.

Do not use a/an with uncountable nouns preceded by an adjective(s):
That is very useful information.
There is some cold beer in the fridge.

Countable and uncountable nouns differ in different languages, and this can prove confusing for learners. Here is a list of some of the most common, easy to confuse uncountable nouns.

accommodation

advice

baggage

bread

equipment

furniture

garbage

information

knowledge

luggage

money

news

pasta

progress

research

travel

work

Click on the link www.esl.about.com for more examples.

THE POSSESSIVE CASE
Another common and very simple structure is the possessive case. It involves the apostrophe, a punctuation mark many students are not used to, as a result it tends to be left out. Remember you need to add the apostrophe " 's" to indicate possession.

Examples Peter's motorcycle
The building's structure

You can place the apostrophe directly after the 's' for words ending in "s", such as the regular plural form of the noun.

Notice that this construction can change the meaning from singular to plural.

Examples The cat's favorite food is tuna. (one cat)
The cats' favorite food is tuna. (more than one cat)

Be sure to revise the possessive words that accompany this structure.

Possessive Adjectives
Possessive adjectives are used instead of possessive nouns when the reference is understood.

For example: Tom is a dog lover. He takes his dog Spike everywhere!

In this case, it is clear that 'his' refers to Tom because of the context. Possessive adjectives are always placed in front of the noun they modify. Here is a list of possessive adjectives:

I - my dog

You - your cat

He - his book

She - her car

It - its color (NOT it's!)

We - our dog

You - your house

They - their farm

Examples
That's my dog in the picture.
Does your cat like tuna?

Possessive Pronouns
Use possessive pronouns to indicate possession when no noun is used. This is the case when the object of possession is understood from the context.

Examples
Whose book is that? It's mine. = It's my book.
Is this your pen? No, it's hers. = It's her pen.
In both cases, the possessive pronoun can be substituted for the possessive adjective because the object of possession is understood from the context.

Here is a list of possessive pronouns.

I - mine

You - yours

He - his

She - hers

We - ours

You - yours

They - theirs

Is this your car? - No, that one over there is mine.
Whose lunch is this? - It's yours.

ADJECTIVES
PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVES -ED/-ING
When writing descriptive texts it‘s necessary that you have a good active vocabulary, rich in descriptive words such as adjectives. A group of adjectives commonly used are the participial adjectives ending in -ed and -ing. In order to describe different things you should know how these words are formed, and how they are used. A participial adjective modifies a noun and shows either the source of feeling or emotion or the receiver of that feeling or emotion.

The Present Participial Adjective -ing is an adjective formed from an active verb, which indicates the cause/source of the feeling or emotion.

Example: The clown was entertaining the family. (active verb)

The clown was entertaining. (present participial adjective - the source of emotion)

The Past Participial Adjective -ed is an adjective formed from a passive verb, which indicates the receiver of the feeling or emotion.

Example: The family was entertained by the clown. (passive verb)

The family was entertained. (past participial adjective - the receiver of feeling/emotion)

VERBS

THIRD PERSON SINGULAR (PRESENT SIMPLE)
Intermediate students should be proficient with this structure, and yet they do tend to leave out the -s for the third person singular (present simple tense). Always go back and edit the first draft. Make sure you've added all -s where necessary. Here are some additional spelling tips for the 3rd person singular (present simple tense).

Most third person present singular verb forms add -s to the end of the verb.

For example: work, he works - think, she thinks

However, if the verb ends in -s, -z, -x, -ch or -sh the third person present singular is formed by adding -es to the verb.

For example: watch, she watches - brush, he brushes

How to spell the forms of a verb ending in -y
The third person present singular of verbs ending in -y preceded by a consonant is formed by changing the -y to -ies.

For example: query, he queries - carry, she carries

The third person present singular of verbs ending in -y preceded by a vowel does not change the -y.

For example: play, he plays - stay, she stays.

PAST SIMPLE REGULAR AND IRREGULAR VERBS
Keep in mind that when telling a story, or an anecdote in the past, or reporting on an event, it's likely that all past tenses will be incorporated. Take the time to revise verb forms in the past and past participle which you find difficult. Organise the verbs in groups which sound similar. Drill them orally.
Click on the link for a comprehensive list of irregular verbs.

VERB PATTERNS
Intermediate students are using more complex sentences with more than one verb. It’s important that you are aware of the verb patterns in English, and know which form the second verb takes. Depending on the preceding verb it either takes on the infinitive (to do), the base form (do), or the gerund (doing).

Here are some examples.

Verb + Infinitive

This is one of the most common verb combination forms.

Example: I waited to begin dinner.

Verb + Verb -ing

This is one of the most common verb combination forms.

Example: They enjoyed listening to the music.

Verb +Verb -ing or Verb Infinitive (no change in meaning)

Some verbs can combine with other verbs using both forms without changing the basic meaning of the sentence.

Example: She started to eat dinner. OR She started eating dinner.

Verb +Verb -ing or Verb Infinitive (change in meaning)

Some verbs can combine with other verbs using both forms. However, with these verbs, there is a change in the basic meaning of the sentence.

Example: They stopped speaking to each other. =}; They don't speak to each other anymore.

They stopped to speak to each other. =}; They stopped walking in order to speak to each other.

Click on the link for a full list of the above verb patterns.

　
For further information on all of these topics click on the links:
English Topics for ESL
Participial Adjectives

COMMON SPELLING ERRORS WHEN WRITING AT INTERMEDIATE LEVEL

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Fri, 06 May 2011 10:43:00 +0000

Further to the entry on comma splices and run-on sentences, I've thought about giving some tips on how to improve your writing at Intermediate level.
As I mentioned, I've had more opportunity to read papers written by students at this level. I'd like to point out some common mistakes, and how they can be avoided.

The most basic mistakes are spelling errors.

the present participle -ing (studying, listening, skiing, tapping)
the past participle -ed (stopped, planned, studied, played)
the third person singular form for the present simple (study - studies, play - plays)

Keep in mind that a one-syllable verb like stop, which ends with a stressed vowel followed by a consonant, will change for the -ing form and the past participle with -ed. The final consonant doubles : stóp, but stopping, and stopped.

Past participle forms with -ed, and third person singular forms for the present simple for a verb ending with a consonant followed by y also change. The y becomes ie : study - studies, and studied. This doesn't apply for verbs which end with a vowel and the consonant y: play - plays, and played.

plural forms (watch - watches, tomato - tomatoes, company - companies, holiday - holidays, loaf - loaves)

Similarly if a singular noun ends with a consonant followed by the consonant y the y also becomes ie: company - companies. For nouns ending with a vowel and y, as for most other nouns just add -s: holiday - holidays, piano - pianos.

For nouns ending in ch, sh, s, x, or z, and certain nouns ending in a consonant and o add -es: watch - watches, tomato - tomatoes.

For most nouns that end in f and ef the f /ef becomes ves: loaf - loaves.

Don't forget there are also irregular plural forms: child - children, mouse - mice, etc.

adverbs formed from adjectives (usually, really)

Adverbs formed with the suffix -ly from an adjective ending in l will also double: real (adjective), but really (adverb).

adjective comparative and superlative forms (fit, fitter than, the fittest)

Again we have a short one-syllable adjective which ends with a stressed vowel í and a consonant. The comparative and superlative forms of short adjectives, as you know, are formed with a suffix (-er and -est), therefore the final consonant doubles: fít - fitter - fittest.

easily confused words (quiet - quite, hour - our)

Consider the meaning of these words, and choose the one that best fits the context.
quiet: an adjective we use to modify a noun when we want to say that it isn't noisy
A quiet town.

quite: a word we use to modify an adjective to make it stronger
This task is quite easy.

hour: is a noun we use to speak about time
The exam lasted an hour and a half.

our: is a possessive adjective for the first person plural (we)
This is our car. (It belongs to us.)

And, so on. Click here for more examples.

capitalisation (I, Friday, August, English, Dear Mr. Smith)

There is a lot we can say about capitalisation in English. Some basic rules are:

always capitalise the first word of a new sentence.
always capitalise the first person singular personal pronoun I, regardless of where it stands in a sentence.
capitalise days of the week, holidays, and months of the year. Do not capitalise seasons.
capitalise countries, languages, and nationalities (adjective form of a specific country).
capitalise letter salutations (openings) and closings.

Examples: Dear Mr. Smith,
Best regards,

Of course these rules apply for all levels from Beginner to Proficiency. I have been teaching mostly at Intermediate level, and that is why I am taking it as a point of reference.

In a next entry we'll discuss common grammar mistakes that we make when writing.

Below are some useful sites with further examples. Bookmark these. They are excellent reference tools.

Plural Nouns
Confusing Spelling
The plural of mouse

Adverbs Spelling -ly
Basic Adverbs Spelling

Easily Confused Words
Common Errors in English
Homophone List for ESL Learners

Capitalisation
Capitalization Rules

EASTER ACROSTIC POEM

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 21:19:00 +0000

Here's an activity related to Holy Week leading up to Easter. It's an idea I borrowed from the British Council website, and it worked quite well with a group of restless junior high school students.
They love to do projects. A good way to get them involved is to incorporate their creative skills such as drawing, colouring, decorating, singing, acting, even sculpting. For this project I allowed them to spend two entire lessons drawing, colouring and decorating A5 sheets of construction paper with an EASTER theme. You can suggest ideas and of course teach the relevant vocabulary: the Easter Bunny, Easter egg, decorating eggs, Easter egg hunt, chocolate eggs, Easter basket, hot cross buns, a Christian holiday, Lent, fasting, Easter Sunday Mass, etc.

Prior to this we had spent a lesson discussing the relevant vocabulary and writing an Easter acrostic poem. It then became the central part of the Easter themed drawings.

Here is how to plan the acrostic poem. Write the letters of the word down the left-hand side of the board:
E

A

S

T

E

R

You can leave a line between letters to give students the chance to experiment with words before writing the poem.

Brainstorm, as a group, words that begin with these letters and are related to the holiday. It's a good opportunity to use a thesaurus. I always encourage students to refer to a dictionary when necessary. Once you have a good list start thinking about writing the poem.

Give them time to work in pairs or individually. When ready, choose a few to read out loud for the class. Write an example on the whiteboard.

Finally, we organised an exhibition and decorated the classroom with their illustrated EASTER ACROSTIC POEMS.

You can even have a vote on the best poem, or the project that gives the best visual and mental image for the Easter holiday. It's up to you.

Here are some ideas you could use:

E aster Day is in
A pril this year
S pring is here
T ime for holidays and
E gg hunts with
R abbits and hot cross buns

Click on the link for the original British Council activity and much more.

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 15:54:00 +0000

EXAM PREPARATION

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 13:36:00 +0000

In order to perform well on any test not just in the study of a foreign language, you should have good learning techniques. Be clear when setting your goals.
If your goal is to perform well in a subject or a course, make sure you understand the course objectives and criteria.
When setting your goals for a course, be aware that the grade you receive on an exam is usually less than 50% of your final course grade. Be aware of all course components which will be graded throughout the course, these usually prepare your for the test/s, and incorporate them into your study plan.

1 Attend as frequently as necessary or possible, and plan your time so that you are available and not feeling overwhelmed by other projects before and after the exam.

2 Prepare well, you know you will do better if you prepare for several weeks rather than for several hours before the exam. It is very likely that the topics will be presented in unfamiliar ways.

Learn the material thoroughly so that you can approach all tasks/problems flexibly.
Join a study group, and see the material presented in different ways. Exchange information, ideas and study tips with your peers.
Studying in different ways can also increase the effectiveness of your learning. You can re-copy your notes, or do extra problem sets from a different textbook on the same topic, and other techniques.

If you are studying for an ESL exam, then focus on the vocabulary and grammar topics presented in the Study Guide. Prepare writing samples on the writing topics you have covered in class (a letter, an email, a descriptive essay, etc.). Very often you can use these in future for the Writing component. Preparing in this way will also help you organise your ideas for the Speaking tasks. The topics are organised in Units which utilise the same vocabulary themed lists, any way that you find useful to practice these vocabulary lists (defined as dictionary items, or in context) will benefit you greatly to widen your vocabulary.

Create your own dictionary with words that are used in business, travel, and commerce. Use them in context. Doing this will not only familiarize you with the word, but also with the context and meaning of the word.
Read aloud regularly. Reading aloud will help you improve your comprehension of the English language. For this task, read a wide variety of materials. You can read newspapers, books, magazines, brochures and even pamphlets. This will expose you to a wider vocabulary.
Expose yourself to media. Watch the news, sitcoms, TV shows or listen to the radio. Hearing other people speak the language will help you get accustomed to its tone. Read advertisements, announcements and billboards.
Be aware of how fast you speak. For other people to comprehend what you are saying, you must avoid speaking too fast. You need to be understood, so be sure to pace yourself when you are speaking.
Practice pausing in between sentences. Pausing in between your sentences will help the listener get the tone of what you are saying. Your ideas will be clearer and more transparent. This is very useful, in particular for the Speaking part of an ESL exam.

Regardless of your performance, preparing for and sitting a test is part of your learning process. It helps you build confidence in the subject. If you have learned the material well, then this will be reaffirmed by the test results. If you have missed out on some topics, then you will know what your weaknesses are. You will be able to go back, and strengthen those areas which are more difficult, and become more competitive for the following test. Make sure you spend more time researching the areas in which you need to improve. Practise and perfect your skills.

As your goal is to do well overall, you will need to go through the same process for all course components. In ESL, there would be a Writing and Speaking component apart from quizzes and tests. Prepare well and on time for all graded assignments. It's a good idea to recycle the tasks given on the tests or exams and prove to your tutor that you have improved and have strengthened your weaknesses. Very often these assignments (which are part of your ongoing grade) will balance out your final grade, despite exam performance. Therefore, you should approach the course holistically - in a flexible and balanced way. Don't be afraid to approach your teacher with any questions, or worries. All teachers would be happy to give thorough answers to your queries, and make sure that you perform better. After all they are there to help you.

If your goal is to improve in a certain field use the course to acquire as much current information as possible. Use the tests and exams to sum up your weaknesses and strengths, and improve in the areas in which you are lacking. Build up your confidence and knowledge by re-taking exams. Create a professional relationship with your peers which would benefit your growth and development in the long-term.

If your goal is to do well on an exam, be it an entrance exam or one of the standardised tests recognised globally such as the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), familiarise yourself and know the different parts of the test. Speak with your peers who have already taken the test. Research it online. Borrow books with practice tests from the library, or buy a couple for your own archive. Take a refresher course, and use the above tips to help in your preparation.

If you are sitting the exam to enter a university or to apply for a job, enquire what the entrance or employer grade requirements are. Different employers and universities require different grades. It is always helpful to know what you should be shooting for. Again, if you're not happy with the test results, re-take it. With standardised tests it may be a bit costly, but in the long-term it benefits your academic and work profile.

Here are some standardised tests that are often asked for when applying for a job with English: the Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC), the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), the Cambridge Certificates: First Certificate in English (FCE), Certificate in Advanced English (CAE), Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE).

Following are some more Dos and Don'ts.

Teach your language to an English speaker. Teach your native tongue to someone who has spoken English their whole life. Doing this will force you to converse with them in English. You will eventually learn new words, sentences and expressions.
Begin writing in your journal using English. Write down your daily experiences and feelings. By doing this, you practice your writing skills and help you improve the way you express yourself in the English language.
Never cram. Try to spread your studying over a long period of time. Doing this will help your mind remember more details with ease. When you cram, you force your mind to process and remember huge amounts of information for a very short period of time. The result is, by the time you are taking a test, there may be some pertinent information you won’t be able to recall.
Listen to your instincts. When you start studying and you are presented with numerous practice tests and answers, it would be helpful to listen to your instincts since there are many trick questions especially in questions asking you to pick the best answer.

Most importantly practice and approach the entire process in a positive way. Hopefully these tips will help you improve and become more efficient in your work and studies.

Some of this material has been taken from the following websites. Click on the link for further information.
EXAM PREPARATION
ESL STUDY GUIDES

Comma Splices and Run-On Sentences

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 20:57:00 +0000

In today's blog post I'd like to discuss the comma splice and the run-on sentence.
It's the first time this semester that I check so many essays at an intermediate/upper-intermediate level, and I keep coming across tricky punctuation.

I've not had much personal experience when writing in English. Although I keep the blog in this language, I find it more and more necessary to read up on punctuation. I've prepared Students for TOEFL where the writing rules differ from the Bulgarian grammar we are taught in school, but I've not graded papers based on their criteria. To be fair I am a bit lost when correcting Students' writing at this level. There are some good activities on sentence structure in the approved course book (New English File), but there isn't much instruction on the use of punctuation for more advanced Students.

Here are some examples of incorrect punctuation and how to fix it.

One of the most common ways to use commas is to separate two main clauses that are connected by a coordinating conjunction such as “and,” “but,” or “or.”

Squiggly ran to the forest, and Aardvark chased the peeves.
Squiggly ran to the forest is a complete sentence, and Aardvark chased the peeves is also a complete sentence. To join them with a comma, you need the word “and” or some other coordinating conjunction. If you just put a comma between them, that's an error called a comma splice or a comma fault:

Squiggly ran to the forest, Aardvark chased the peeves. (wrong)

Here's another example:
COMMA SPLICE: I got up late this morning, I didn't have time for breakfast.

You can use one of the following ways to correct it:
CORRECTIONS:
I got up late this morning. I didn't have time for breakfast. (end-stop punctuation: the full stop ".")
or
I got up late this morning; I didn't have time for breakfast. (the semicolon ";" - commonly used in American English. If the two sentences are closely related to each other, you can use a semicolon to connect them without a coordinating conjunction.)
or
I got up late this morning, so I didn't have time for breakfast.
or
I got up late this morning, and I didn't have time for breakfast. (a coordinating conjunction)

In essence, commas aren't meant to join main clauses all by themselves; using a comma in this way leads to a comma splice.
That's bad punctuation, but it's easy to fix.

The comma splice is indeed a form of run-on sentence.

A RUN-ON SENTENCE (sometimes called a "fused sentence") has at least two parts, either one of which can stand by itself (in other words, two independent clauses), but the two parts have not been properly connected.

It is important to realize that the length of a sentence really has nothing to do with whether a sentence is a run-on or not; being a run-on is a structural flaw that can plague even a very short sentence:

The sun is high, put on some sunblock.

This is the comma splice error we discussed above.

Run-on sentences happen typically under the following circumstances*:

1. When an independent clause gives an order or directive based on what was said in the prior independent clause:

This next chapter has a lot of difficult information in it, you should start studying right away.
(We could put a period where that comma is and start a new sentence. A semicolon might also work there.)

2.When two independent clauses are connected by a transitional expression (conjunctive adverb) such as however, moreover, nevertheless.

Mr. Nguyen has sent his four children to ivy-league colleges, however, he has sacrificed his health working day and night in that dusty bakery.
(Again, where that first comma appears, we could have used either a period — and started a new sentence — or a semicolon.)

3.When the second of two independent clauses contains a pronoun that connects it to the first independent clause.

This computer doesn't make sense to me, it came without a manual.
(Although these two clauses are quite brief, and the ideas are closely related, this is a run-on sentence. We need a period where that comma now stands.)

Most of those computers in the Learning Assistance Center are broken already, this proves my point about American computer manufacturers.

Again, two nicely related clauses, incorrectly connected — a run-on. Use a period to cure this sentence.

These examples come from the below sources. Click on the link for further information.

GRAMMAR GIRL: SPLICE COMMA
SPLICE COMMA
RUN-ON SENTENCES

FIRST SEMESTER HIGHLIGHTS

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 14:15:00 +0000

Phew! I've finally some time for an entry. The Ministry of Education has called this week a health emergency. Flu infection has spread and schools have closed for a week. Therefore, I have plenty of time for the blog. This coincides with the end of semester. Both students and teachers have been given a longer holiday before the start of the second term.

Many thanks to 72 grammar school (elementary and juniour high school) for giving me the chance to help out this semester. I felt like a complete newbie, but it was worth it. I now know my way around Dnevnik (where progress reports of the students' grades are entered), which I found really daunting at first.  The Dnevnik Book keeps a record of all grades and notes to head-teacher and parents about the students' discipline and study habits. I even did some work in Belezhnik (the students' report cards), which is probably quite hard if you have to enter grades in all report cards all the time, as the groups are quite a few. This would probably take up most of your time along with lesson, and test/exam preparation.

I got a chance to grade some workbooks, no notebooks though, and got an idea of how well students work in class and prepare at home. It is often surprising that they do quite a lot of work, when you think they're off into their own world, with little interest in the subject, and/or topic discussed.

In terms of discipline: there was far too much silliness. I was told off a couple of times, in local spirited vernacular, for not knowing how to greet students when entering a classroom. I honestly do not remember the entire ritual of Class Stani - Class Mirno! (Class stand up, Class stand at attention!) To be fair they were a bit slack about it from beginning to end. There were some strange goings on: too much noise from cell phones and ipods, especially after the Christmas holidays; unplanned Christmas dos with silly dancing; inopportune joke telling in loud voices; and improvised singing of local chalga classics.  Sweater fights after tests were a frequent occurrence. Tempted as I was I did not join in. Vexed shouting over who's playing what on the CD player, brought in for a simple and straightforward A1 Listening task, nearly kept me from attempting to cover the Listening exercises. I was eventually given the chance to do something academic with their CD player.
Weirdest of all - a student in junior high school inspired by my presence came up to me and stuck chewing gum in my hair, giving new meaning to the phrase "getting into your hair." It my have been a critique on my appearance in general, I have been gradually going bald since Mexico.  Possibly this even bothers my students.

Taking the chance to evaluate our work, we did quite a few tests with varying success, without too much shameless cheating. Listening tasks were a complete flop, really chaotic and I found it difficult to maintain control over the group. When it came to presentations they were excited at first, then as the deadline came closer they were demotivated and anxious. They were able to present, in the end, on their chosen topic, but not as easily as other groups. I wasn´t feeling very enthusiastic about testing their writing skills because I was hoping to give them Dictation. However, after failing to keep them focused during the Listening exercises, I gave up the idea. Surprisingly, they cooperated with text translation from English to Bulgarian, but they were reluctant to work on their writing skills in English. Regardless, their coursebooks ENERGY, written by native-speakers and targeted specifically at Bulgarian learners, provide a lot of material dedicated to written expression. They need to be encouraged to do the exercises by their instructor, although a balance has to be found. If at this age (10-12) they don't feel as confident when writing in their mother tongue, they might find their writing deteriorates if they divide their attention between two languages. As a foreign language teacher, you wouldn't want their writing skills to suffer in their mother-tongue, because they prefer to write in English, or their chosen second language.

In answer to a question I posed in a previous entry, the following teachers still guide and inspire the students: Hristo Botev, Saints Cyril and Methodius, Rayna Knyaginya, Sophronius of Vratsa, Vasil Aprilov, Simeon I The Great, Otets Paisiy, and Ivan Vazov.

These are some quick impressions from the past semester, there are many topics that I'd like to discuss in further detail, in the next entries.

Thanks for reading!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 20:04:00 +0000

True to the previous entry I've moved slowly through the last couple of months without being able to write for the blog, but covering great distances with a determination that surprised me. Work piled up, and I hadn't realised how dedicated you have to be in order to update the site regularly.

I was asked to help out at a small primary school which has given me the opportunity to learn a little bit more about the administrative side of running a school in Bulgaria. The atmosphere brought on quite a few memories - most of them happy. It's reassuring to see that teachers are well-trained, the facilities are in good order, and the students are in good hands.

The last month has been filled with a joy in helping the children advance in their studies, and prepare for the holidays. It was great to hear them sing Christmas carols, and dance to traditional Bulgarian folk music.

So, to put you in the holiday spirit here's a short film on Bulgarian Christmas and New Year's celebrations, wishing you peace, health, joy and happy times with your loved ones.

More updates to follow.

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 14:00:00 +0000

LIFE MOVES AT A SLOWER PACE

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 16:14:00 +0000

Life is a Journey to be Savoured. Work it Faster, Do it Better, Make us Stronger.

I've suddenly been reminded of these two contrasting ideas. A slower paced lifestyle good for the soul and the heart; and a faster, stronger, healthier pace of life - good for the body and the mind. It boils down to personalities, I suppose. Or maybe to seasons, or to weekdays and weekends. Or country life and city life. Or even to two different hemispheres, or continents. It certainly has to do with movement. These are words used to express an appreciation and a savouring of life or dynamism and efficiency.

Since my stay in Mexico I've come to associate a joyous slower paced life with Latin America and a Faster, Better, Stronger need for an efficient lifestyle with more developed parts of the world, shall we say Europe. Thinking about it in Sofia, I would say North America (Canada, US and Mexico) are certainly living faster and more efficiently than our European joy in a slower more satisfying life. Who's to say? Points of view. Maybe it depends on your current geographical status, maybe it depends on where you love more.

Certainly these two opposing concepts help me define life almost daily. Like muscles in our body, slow muscles are good for long distance running, and endurance activities - they can work longer without getting tired; fast moving muscles are good for rapid movements, like jumping and sprinting, they contract quickly but get tired faster as they consume a lot of energy. Our muscles are made up of both types of fibres, our legs and back are made up of mostly slow twitch muscles to maintain posture, and our eyes are made up of rapid twitch muscles.

We find balance in the fusion, both types of fibres working together.

I'll try to relate these ideas to classroom organisation. A student's aptitude depends on their literacy, their learning success on their learning strategies. A learning strategy is how one gains, processes, and collects information (Gregorc, 1979; Davidson et al., 1992).

It's impossible to think of a group of students as uniform or alike. Classrooms are diverse, as much as we would like to adapt the system and form uniform groups of advanced students and slower learners. Even when an academic system lends itself to streaming students into ability groups there is still diversity within them. Grouping by ability may improve the academic performance of advanced students in the short run. High-achieving students tend to progress further when advanced academic courses are available. They need an incentive. They tend to perform better if higher standards are set and required of them. It is an idealistic notion that this can be achieved within the Bulgarian public sector, but perhaps it is not necessary. For every research reviewer who has concluded that grouping is helpful, there is another who has concluded that it is harmful. There is substantial evidence that streaming doesn't alleviate attitude and behavioural problems among students, it usually makes them worse, showing that grouping is more often than not biased and unfair. A result of streaming is a segregation by ethnicity and social class. As mentioned, students' academic performance may improve for some time, but over time their achievements tend to become more unequal. On the whole the method of streaming can be detrimental to the students' equal learning opportunities despite their abilities. It is a controversy that has gone on for almost a century. We fluctuate between mixed-ability teaching and a more conscious focus towards equality of educational opportunity. There are political, economic, and social factors that dictate this.

The practice of grouping by ability in school was popular after the Second World War. It subsequently fell into disfavour, as research proved that its impact may be negative. However, it continued to be practiced as a better means of raising standards, and over the last decade it has become common again.

In the ESL classroom, undeniably grouping by language ability is of importance, it gives students more opportunity to practice the language, and reduces class size. It facilitates the choice of teaching material. It does not guarantee high academic performance, but it provides a positive learning environment for students of diverse learning abilities, within a fixed curriculum, appropriate for that level. In order to appreciate better all the unique personalities that a language teacher comes across in a self-contained group, the instructor can vary the grouping arrangements. The students' seating, the types of activities, the layout of the furniture can be used to safeguard students' movement and behaviour, and assist a teacher in maintaining control over a group of pupils.

According to Freiberg and Driscoll (1992), the kind of classroom that would best support grouping practices is a cohesive classroom. In a cohesive classroom, students develop socially and emotionally and are able to be group members. In this respect, the classroom teacher should consider the norms of the class to determine its cohesiveness. Norms are shared expectations of how group members should think, feel and behave (Weber, 1994). Norms greatly influence interpersonal relationships because they provide guidelines that help members understand what is expected of them and what they should expect from others. Productive group norms are essential to group effectiveness (Weber, 1994). Therefore, one important task of the teacher is to help the group establish, accept and maintain productive group norms. (GROUPING IN THE ESL CLASSROOM Nor Azmi b. Mustafa)

As a teacher you gain appreciation of your students and subject through classroom diversity, be it at a joyous pace savouring all the profession has to offer, or faithfully teaching your pupils to be faster, better, stronger individuals.

The following links provide further reading:
Primary pupils' experiences of different types of grouping in school
Standards, Inequality & Ability Grouping in Schools
Grouping in the ESL classroom

PRIVATE AND STATE SCHOOLS

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 11:36:00 +0000

Further to the previous entry, the group has been promptly cancelled and I shall not enter a Bulgarian school for the time being. I was allowed inside a classroom a couple of times, however did not come to open the coursebook or start work with the children. The brief chance to look inside a state school got me thinking about the differences and similarities of private and state schooling. An entry I've been meaning to write for awhile.

School in Bulgaria, in general, has always brought on mixed feelings, mostly of anxiety and imagined illness, that would excuse me from attending. It's odd how instantly when I was invited to meet up inside the school I did not feel at ease. I wondered would they really stick to all the old rules of blue uniforms with white collars and red scarves (for the young pioneers)? Would the students on call, ask the group to greet me, and report on the absent students, as we used to do in high school? Would there be an enormous portrait of Todor Zhivkov (former communist dictator) hanging above the blackboard? Would there be a blackboard with chalk and a mouldy wet rag by a bucket or a whiteboard with a marker and eraser set? Would I be asked to quiz students verbally and enter subjective grades in a big green roster called "dnevnik"?

When I finally entered the school corridor I felt happy, there was nothing dreary about it, plenty of potted flowers and plants; amazing murals I thought only existed on UNAM's walls; a school cafeteria with a nice menu I'd not seen in years; groups of noisy children running about or sitting on the floor drawing. It almost reminded me of an artsy club we used to go to to look at art, listen to music, and watch short films. What with its parquet wooden floors, light flooding through enormous windows onto rows and rows of hard-back chairs, poster and drawings adorned walls. Schools if you look at them holistically are palatial, and certainly a hub of all art forms.

So, on the whole I quite enjoyed all interviews and the near close encounter of teaching at a state school. From what I could take in it differed little from the private schools where I've had the opportunity to teach, not in Europe but in Latin America. In terms of resources it seemed low on technology, I didn't see a computer lab. Despite this, I recall that our Bulgarian state high school, had a lab with the first Pravetz-82 computers. Oddly Pravetz is the home-town of above mentioned Bulgarian president Todor Zhivkov, famous for its (now closed) computer plant. On that note, I'm certain a good percentage of Bulgarian state schools provide PCs for their students, be it Bulgarian or foreign.

On the other hand, in Mexico I remember it was impossible to get students to use the computer lab on their own, unless of course it was for the purposes of computer class. For which there was almost never a teacher, as it is a small town and quite low on teaching staff. As well as it might have been equipped the technology was misused and underused. At that age it is something students still take for granted. My university students who pay tuition fees through the nose are hardly ever found behind a computer or in the library, unless it's for a last minute project, let alone high school students who aren't required anything more than the occasional writing assignment. I hate to be a prophet of lies, but if they spend as much time on the Internet as I do researching their major I would be out of all classroom presential work.

What I found most off-putting, and this is something that I've not been able to avoid at primary and secondary school level, is the aggression used to project the teacher's voice and get student's attention. I've always felt like a demented out-of-control mother with more children than she can handle, when shouting at students. The aggression then translates to the students' and teachers' home environment and it can become quite messy and unpleasant. Mexican schools provide a more caring environment, because they are Catholic colleges. Their society revolves around the Catholic church. A teacher achieves respect because his/her vocation rests on the Catholic faith. Classically, Mexican teachers, in their majority, are priests or nuns.

Bulgarian schools used to place emphasis on Marxist teachings. This is what formed our thinking, morals and self-discipline. Now that there is so little faith in a newly-formed democratic system, I can't say how students are disciplined at that age. Without a doubt, however, the head-teacher's voice, at one point, sounded quite hysterical. Making it again a strangely hostile environment that I would mind going into.

What do we usually consider when entering the process of choosing a private or state school? Family tradition (not necessarily a custom in Bulgaria, but a factor in Mexico); expensive tuition fees, which according to an article I'm reading as I write, are not more expensive than housing next to good state schools. Although, I remember living far away from the state junior and high schools we attended with my brother in the US, and this was resolved by an efficient school bus system, so even that shouldn't be a problem if there is a well-funded educational system. I wouldn't necessarily agree that independent schools have a broader curriculum. In smaller teaching communities the same teachers are employed in both state and private schools, and their training and the criteria set by the educational body are the same. The same annual school academies are attended by both state and private institutions and this is where the curriculum is defined. As a result equality in the curriculum is achieved. To be fair, the standards set by the US state schools I am familiar with are higher than the standards set in the schools I've attended and taught in Mexico and Bulgaria. Of course I have no knowledge of American independent schools, or any European educational institution outside Bulgaria, and it is still difficult to compare, in that sense. Group size could certainly be a factor. Private schools have the upper-hand here, they do manage to have smaller groups of pupils. They have higher selection criteria which reduces classroom size. This could improve weaker students' academic performance who would be left lagging behind in a less-disciplined environment with bigger groups. Exam results are possibly better in private schools, and so are the social advantages. Mexican schools have excellent exchange programmes between schools of the same religious order. State schools don't cater as well for students with special needs, so that too should be considered.

The biggest strain if a family decides to enrol their children in a private school are the fees. There are payment plans, of course, and scholarships, but most families manage by carefully budgeting and doing without quite a few luxuries. What I find fundamentally wrong is that education has been turned into a business, and the emphasis is placed on a very capitalist concept that of money going to money. I was brought up in a communist society where the option of private schooling was only available abroad, and has only now become a trend. My first experience of private education was as a teacher not as a paying parent abroad in Mexico not at home in Bulgaria. Therefore, these ideas are still quite rudimentary. To paraphrase another source, it is unlikely that a government designed system is more foolproof than a system created by market forces. It is an eye-opener for me that a free market builds quality. I am still a learning novice, mostly privately-funded and often state-schooled.

The following links provide further reading:
http://blogs.warwick.ac.uk/iadeghe/entry/private_vs_state/, http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/article591256.ece?token=null&offset=0&page=1

FALL SEMESTER 2010-2011

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 17:54:00 +0000

Back from a relaxing 10 days at the beach, and all set for a late start of the new academic year. I've had some good news, the kind people from Oxford School of Foreign Languages have invited me to teach a group of two-graders. This means I'll, at least, vocariously experience teaching at a Bulgarian school, as they rent the premises of one.
I still have no impressions of what to expect from a Bulgarian secondary school in 2010, but this one seems equipped with all the basics. What I remember from my student days is that it gets quite cold in winter, and it seems little has been done to rectify this. It's still early days, however, temperatures for the moment are a pleasant 15C.
The group will cover the last 4-5 Units of Happy House 2, and move on to Happy Street 1 (Oxford University Press) which we'll have to cover by May (spring semester). One of the first problems, and I should be used to this by now, is that I will not be given a book to take home, we have audio, however, which is nice. Hopefully, students will have both Student's book and workbook.
Whiteboard markers seem to be a problem, also, I suspect I'll be buying my own again.
Other than that I am looking forward to working with the books, and meeting the children.
That's all for now!

TO THE LIBRARY

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 18:42:00 +0000

In preparation for October, I dropped by the university library and picked up a teaching pack for New English File Pre-Intermediate for the A2 (Common European Framework) groups. I'll be using this system for a second semester, and my first impression, as it is stated clearly on the cover, is that it gets students to speak. I'd been using Upstream for years, and it focuses on Writing and Grammar, so it is good to see another coursebook and compare. Similarly the Headway books are an excellent tool to work on students' speaking skills.
It's not been made clear to me why, but I understand that Headway and Upstream have not been approved by the university board and they've opted for New English File and Cutting Edge. I was sorry to see the above left on the shelves, but I suppose it's good to give them a break for a bit.
The library's been spruced up since our student days, with a nice reading area and a good backlog of publications in a number of languages. They've turned the hall where we received our diplomas into an anthropological museum, which was fun to see. The corridors seem strangely calm and eerie. A heavy lethargy fills the cafeteria and park.
I was quite lucky to find the necessary teaching material, although CDs were a problem. There is so much demand, and supply is low, I was left with nothing last semester, and taught from a photocopied Student's Book. Luckily a lot of the material can be found online and I was able to stick to the book content without having to refer to other coursebooks. I've always been a fan of teaching from more than one source, but with these courses you risk straying from the curriculum, as one of the main objectives is exam preparation. My two priorities have been squeezing into the statutory 100 academic hours, and second-guessing the in-house exams' contents. Without the necessary teaching and test materials it has been demotivating at times, but colleagues and pupils have been supportive and we've found a balance. Hopefully this semester's objectives will be to teach the skills necessary to improve the student's proficiency, and provide an environment where they can effectively communicate in the language, regardless of all administrative setbacks.
Meanwhile we're off to lovely St. Vlas on the Black Sea coast.
More to come in October.

IS IT BECAUSE I'M BLACK?

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 09:58:00 +0000

Disappointingly I've not been accepted to teach in a school in my home country. I'll be having a nice rest till October when classes at the local university start, where I occasionally teach. Better luck next year.

On receiving the results I thought up today's entry title...
"Вие не сте приета /Vie ne ste prieta/ You have not been accepted," says the receptionist when advising on a rejected application. I'd not heard this phrase since my mother told me that I'd not been accepted by my first choice university to study English philology. This brought on similar feelings and thoughts, and a very different thought provoked by the word приета /prieta/.

It's funny, I'd considered the word after listening to a local Mexican radio programme, hosted by a lady called "prieta". I asked my husband what it meant and he explained that it's colloquially used to talk about dark skin. So the journalist's affectionate nickname was "dark-skinned/brown", Ms. Brown, in Spanish. I, in turn, explained that in Bulgarian приета means accepted. As she was the only female journalist on the panel, it was strange and funny that she was called PRIETA - accepted by her male peers.

So, if the receptionist had said this to a Spanish-speaking teacher, would s/he have taken it as an offence? Thinking, "is she calling me brown?" or "is she telling me that I'm not brown enough? Is it a whites-only or a browns-only school? Am I just being paranoid?" Clearly,"yes" but it's ironic to come across the word again. It too brought on the questions: If we were to have children, how would they feel growing up and studying in Bulgaria? How does my husband feel working here, and learning the language from scratch? etc.

I am disappointed by the news, and more so because it's Bulgaria. I remember when applying for scholarships to study abroad, one of the conditions was to return and give back to the local community. What opportunity does one have to do that when coming back? I'm probably getting ahead of myself, there are ways to become integrated again. Meanwhile, here's to Wu Tang Clan's Hollow Bones.
Enjoy!

AS I JOB HUNT

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 16:20:00 +0000

It's been a gruelling month of job applications and interviews. Something I'd become unaccustomed to in the last few years. One feels pampered by the stable personal economy of a teacher in a permanent position, which was possible in Mexico. Here in Europe, however, the difficulty to find formal employment was instantly felt. Possibly because of my age, and the common excuse of an economic crisis.
Being interviewed formally for a teaching position is a new experience for me. I'd been able to avoid this in the past. I was invited to teach while and after studying for my degree, and moved on to do something similar in Latin America. So, my ego has been a bit bruised. I'm grateful for the opportunity to see this side of our profession, and I understand we're having difficult economic times, but this is nothing new to Bulgaria. Although, I wouldn't expect my economic situation to improve dramatically, after taking on a permanent position as a secondary school teacher of English, I would hope to continue teaching. I remain hopeful that the effort made by myself, and all the colleagues I met at each interview, quite a few displaced teachers looking for a stable job, will pay off.
It was interesting to see how much these buzzing groups of academics, recollect groups of noisy teenagers waiting in the schoolyards on the first school day. Some starting out others graduating. They in turn remind the flocks of swallows, just before the battle cry El Grito de Independencia in Mexico, teaming on the dangerously low electric cables, preparing for winter flight.
Well, in a couple of weeks all of these people will come together and happilly coexist for another academic year, here in Eastern Europe. While in picturesque Lagos de Moreno, swallows will naturally flock crying out, as did Miguel Hidalgo , for Independence. Both are woth reliving, let's hope more good things are in store. At least a positive response to the final of too many intreviews.

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 13:22:00 +0000

HostGator coupons

VOCABULARY

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 11:19:00 +0000

In this entry I will take the opportunity to list some ways of introducing new vocabulary. As I mentioned in a previous post on spellling, there are many ice breaking and vocabulary building activities that a teacher can implement from the very first lesson.
I come back to the idea that younger teachers are more willing to experiment and engage in creative activities with their students, whereas more experienced teachers resort to more practical exercises. They prefer to compile word lists, explain/translate word items and often ask students to memorize vocabulary. Both approaches are necessary in a classroom, but you have to find a balance which works for you as a teacher and for the group. Each group of students is unique, in a sense, and they respond to different methods of teaching. What you should aim to do is provide enough context for each word, so that students can view it from different sides, and explore its meaning, its shape, its transcription, its spelling, and its collocations (how it combines with other words).
Here are some things I do for each new list of vocabulary items:

Brainstorming (elliciting topical vocabulary from students, intermediate to advanced)
Pre-teaching (explaining new words before reading or listening, beginner to advanced)
Compiling (making a list of key words, not too long; discussing meaning, transcription, drilling pronunciation; asking students to compile a personal dictionary, all levels)
Practicing (providing a context for the vocabulary through reading/listening comprehension exercises)
Recycling (involving students in a fun activity to re-discover the vocabulary we've learned)

For more activities view the entry on spelling.
That's all for today.

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BOOKS

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 08:51:00 +0000

BOOKS is a diary blog on TEFL related issues, intended for both teachers and students. It is a personal archive of my teaching experience and a resource website. Although, I am at the initial stages of its design and there are many elements missing, content will be updated weekly. Hopefully the articles written will be informative, and it will become a useful guide for educators and students of English.

DICTIONARIES

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 13:16:00 +0000

DICTIONARIES are a Treasure. I don't use them enough. They are a gift, and a tool one inevitably invests in. I grew up with the Bulgarian edition, two hard-back volumes English-Bulgarian bilingual dictionary, which belongs to my mother and she keeps in the library.
I took them for granted then, and referred to the family Webster's thesaurus (monolingual). But now that I have been far from Bulgarian texts, I find they have preserved a wealth of Bulgarian I've not loved in decades. Wonderful to be close to these times again.
In London I had set this aside, I was exposed to the living language, and ART BOOKS, which I could easily find. So, the Webster's linguistic definitions were substituted by the glossy illustrations of The Art Book.
In Mexico I inherited for a short while a hefty Larousse edition, also wonderful: Spanish-English. Later on I found the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, which is great. I recommend this for all learners beginner to advanced. It's accessible and easy to carry around, and lend to learners when at a loss for the right word/phrase. The featured Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary with CD-ROM is fantastic. There are plenty of activities you could do with your students, and more so with the available CD-ROM. If you have access to a computer room, you could work with a few CD-ROMs in pairs or small groups. If that isn't possible, you can do wonders with a laptop and a portable projector. I also recommend their online dictionaries, they're an excellent Internet tool.
Look after them, preserve them, compile them, and introduce your students to them.

Here's a useful link to the British Council/BBC Teaching English website, with an informative article on dictionary work in the classroom.

BOOKS

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 10:15:00 +0000

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AS I SPEAK

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 12:25:00 +0000

Speaking and Writing in the target language are a teacher's and a student's key goals. As a teacher, one tends to dominate the topic, which is fine if the objective set for the students is to acquire better
listening skills, or to improve note-taking techniques (these are useful for all Listening and Reading Comprehension activities). When as teachers we dominate the subject, however, we fall into error, as students are not given the opportunity to participate, and develop their Speaking skills. When we train this is stressed on, but after years of teaching one tends to eliminate the more creative and fun activities, and substitute them for didactic lectures. There are many reasons for this, pressure for better discipline in the classroom, lack of resources and materials, end-of-course deadlines to be met, exam results to be boosted, etc. There is pressure on teachers to perform well, their name and that of the institution where they are placed/hired is at stake. For novice teachers and teachers in training the experience is still new, they are more willing to experiment, and try out creative ideas. Experienced "seasoned" teachers have better understanding of how to control a classroom and their approach is more practical and didactic.

In other words teachers do a lot of speaking, students do less. At least in a disciplined classroom, when in recess or on a lunch break (depending on students' age ) balance is regained, and they are just as noisy. One hopes that their conversation refers back to what was discussed in the classroom.

Here are some ideas to get them to speak more and more fluently, and hopefully leave some good memories from their learning experience.

It's imperative that the teacher gets to know the group. They will have to spot the strengths and weaknesses of the students quickly in order to help them learn better, and prepare for tests and exams, if that is one of the course's objectives. It's necessary for the students to get to know the teacher and their classmates/coursemates in order to establish a good learning environment, where they would feel at ease to speak. Start the course by introducing yourself, and asking the students to do the same, there are many good ways to do this. I adapted an activity called "Personal Star" , mentioned on the British Council website, and have started asking students, from primary school to junior high school (all llevels) from high school to university (beginners), to first draw a fun star in their notebooks. Then write their first name in the centre and a favourite thing in each one of the star's rays. I start by making my Personal Star on the whiteboard, writing my name in the centre, and a helpful question in each of the rays for them to answer.

What is your favourite colour?
What is your favourite animal?
What is your favourite food?
What is your favourite hobby?
What is your favourite school subject/sport?

For small groups they work on their star individually, for larger groups in pairs, or small teams, I usually end with a class discussion. I tell them a bit about myself using the star questions, and they introduce themselves and talk about their favourite things. I find this is a great first lesson ice-breaker. It creates a nice environment and students feel confident to speak.

Click on the following links for other activities which encourage students to speak and exchange personal information:

Asure that all students are given the opportunity to participate. Encourage shier students. Give them incentives: points, candy, stickers, stamps, tickets.
Organise debates for intermediate and advanced students. Pose a controversial topic, divide the class/group in teams, ask Team A to be in favour, ask Team B to be against. Each team prepares their argument. Mix the two teams, and have the debate. Decide together which team was more convincing. You can even have a vote.
Have class discussions when starting a new topic, follow it up with a reading comprehension and/or listening comprehension activity. Use these discussions to elicit topic-related vocabulary. Ask students to present on these topics individually or in small teams, at the end of the course, using relevant vocabulary.

These are some techniques that I use in the classroom.
Hope you've found these useful, and thank you for reading today's entry.

AS I SPELL

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 07:16:00 +0000

Closely related to the previous entries. My work with younger students has helped me experiment quite a lot. University students are at a more mature age, already used to acquiring information through lectures. With younger students you really have to be creative. I was used to working with university students and adults, and my approach, at first, left most of my junior and high school students unresponsive. There was very little communication until I started from the beginning with a number of activities suggested by my colleagues, and quite a few borrowed from the British Council website. The British Council have resource centres worldwide, where teachers can find plenty of materials on all TEFL related topics. We live far from Mexico City, where British Council Mexico are located, and I have become a frequent user of their resource website. Targeted at Mexican learners it has been very helpful.
With the help of my junior high school students, who are very enthusiastic, I have been able to explore a more creative approach to teaching English. A good way to bring the group together, to find a common level for all students, and to introduce them to the language is through spelling activities. English differs from Bulgarian and Spanish, in that, words are not spelled the way they are pronounced. This is quite daunting for all beginners, both children and adults. With children you can find creative ways to teach the alphabet, and work on spelling. With adults you have to find the right balance between just learning to spell and gaining a broader view and understanding of the language. You should introduce them gradually to the alphabet, to spelling (in Bulgarian and other Slavic languages there is no such thing as spelling), to spelling rules, and to phonetic transcription. With more advanced students, who read and write in English, spelling is already natural. Some things to improve on are easily confused words, and the spelling differences in American and British English. Have a dictionary handy to double-check words. Engage in some dictionary work, ask students to look up words difficult to spell. Relate this to word formation and/or the grammar topic discussed.
Some fun spelling activities:

Spelling Bee (The classic spelling bee. It is a competition where students are asked to spell English words. A winner is chosen from the group. This works well linked with test revision, or test feedback.)
Spelling Soup/Alphabet Soup (Sopa de Letras - suggested by colleagues. An activity I learned in Mexico. The group is divided in teams. Each team spells a word with alphabet pasta. Points are awarded for correctly spelled words, only.
Categories (The group is divided in teams. A category is given, by the teacher. They have a minute to make a word list. The captain of each team, as they brainstorm together, writes down as many vocabulary items as possible related to the category. Only the captain is allowed to write. Points are awarded only for correctly spelled words.)
Hangman (A marker and whiteboard game. The teacher/a student thinks up a word. The group tries to guess by suggesting letters. A variation is omitting the vowels, and writing down only the consonants of a word and vice versa. The group try and guess the missing letters. Or try this with phonetic script. Click on the word hangman to read more.)

They also work well as ice-breaking and vocabulary building activities.
I hope you've found these ideas on spelling in the TEFL classroom, useful.
Thank you for reading today's entry.

CONFESSION: I have taken a spelling test as part of the Guru.com freelance programme, and I am an average speller. I should do the Guardian crossword more often.

AS I LISTEN

noreply@blogger.com (Alina) — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 15:21:00 +0000

As we are on the topic of music, I thought I'd add some tips for teaching listening skills in the TEFL classroom. When I went back to teaching English in a local Mexican university, for the first time I came across the problem of large groups of students entirely unprepared for and averse to all Listening activities. They openly refused to participate, and complained outright "No nos gusta hacer Listening. Teacher, we are not good at English. We find Listening comprehension very difficult." Indeed they performed poorly when tested on this skill.
It took me a while to come up with a full-proof method, but what really worked for me, was dictation. It surprised me, because we as students hated dictation. Granted we had no audio materials when I studied English, and dictation was the only Listening activity performed in the classroom. However, I was able to get their attention and largely work on their Listening, Writing and Reading skills by dictating excerpts from the tapescripts. This followed by Listening to the full audio material and going carefully through the suggested Listening Comprehension activities, gave good results.
Another method which I've found very useful is pre-teaching vocabulary. Either by matching up key words/phrases with the primary language equivalent (for lower levels with the same first language), or with definitions in English, on the whiteboard/worksheets (for higher levels, for mixed level groups, and groups with mixed first languages). It can be varied by just making a word list with key words/phrases and explaining them as a group on the whiteboard, with respective transcription, primary language equivalent (optional), and definition. Followed by Listening, and working on Listening Comprehension, at your discretion.
It's also a good opportunity to work on their understanding of the parts of speech. Whether a word is a Noun, a Verb, an Adjective. Also, a good way to practice the indefinite and definite article.
Listening activities apart from developing comprehension also practice pronunciation. Take time to transcribe words difficult to pronounce, drill chorally/individually. Something which we worked on with a colleague in Mexico, for short conversations, was choral repetition after each chunk of language. You can play around with it, divide the group in two then ask one part to repeat the part of Student A, and the other the part of Student B. It works well with my Hispanic students, as they are used to going to church, where they are asked to chant chorally on a regular basis. Follow this up by writing a short conversation on the same/similar topic, in teams, then acting these out for the whole group, using the pre-taught/key phrases. They enjoy this a lot.
My Bulgarian students find this difficult but dictation and translation work well for them, as they are methods used widely in Eastern European schools.
Just a few ideas, that I've found work well, and practice all four skills Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking.